Even with the highest veteran population (per capita) in the country, Alaska was the last state in the union to have a museum dedicated to honoring veterans and Alaska's contributions to military history.It was only through ten years of blood, sweat, and many tears of passionate volunteers that the Alaska Veterans Museum opened its doors on April 17th, 2011.
Still operating as a 100% volunteer organization, their mission is simple; honor Alaska’s veterans' by recording and sharing their stories; educate visitors about Alaska’s military history through exhibits and displays; and inspire our community to support our Active Duty, Guard and Reserve, and our veterans.

Col (ret) Suellyn Novak has always been known for her tenacity. It will be a trait that is sorely missed as she steps down, for a good reason, from her position on December 31 as the president and executive director of the Alaska Veterans Museum (AVM). Under her leadership, AVM won numerous awards like the Seymour Award (2014) for best community organization and the Dena’ina Award (2015) for the best non-profit team organization in Anchorage. AVM has also been featured in five magazine articles and contributed to the recent “Deadliest Catch: A Hillstrand 4th of July” holiday special on the Discovery Channel.